6-22-12 Lesson Plan CP6651
Lesson Topic: Political and practical dimensions of multicultural counseling
Length of lesson: 8 hours
Stage 1 – Desired Results
Established Goals: Students will gain knowledge regarding the political and practical
dimensions of multicultural counseling
Readings: Case study: Maggie (with an activity); Text: Sue & Sue, Ch. 3-8
Topics: Reading of case study and activity; video (TBD); The politics of diversity and its
influences on counselors and counseling; oppression 101; all about micro-aggressions;
barriers to multicultural counseling; intervention strategies; diversity issues in family
counseling.
Standards addressed: CACREP Section II G.2.b; G.2.c
Essential Questions:
1. In what ways are issues of
diversity political?
2. What are the elements of
oppression and how does it
play out in society, and
counseling specifically?
3. What are micro-aggressions
and how do they influence the
counselor/client relationship?
4. What are some barriers to
multicultural counseling?
5. In what ways might
intervention strategies
culturally specific?
6. What are some diversity issues
that impact family counseling?
Desired Understandings:
Students will understand that counseling
with diverse populations has political and
practical dimensions.
Key Knowledge and Skills Acquired as a Result:
Students will know:
1. Key terms – micro-aggressions, overt/covert/institutional/internalized racism.
2. Students will be able to apply concepts introduced in the class in in-class
exercises.
Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence
Performance Task(s):
1. Students will describe what their
office will look like, be like, do
differently, considering a
multicultural perspective.
2. They will be able to develop a code
of ethics that integrates a
multicultural perspective.
3. Students will analyze the case,
“Maggie” and consider its
implications in working in diverse
communities.
Other Evidence, Including Student SelfAssessment and Reflection
Stage 3 – Learning Plan
Learning Activities:
8:30-9:00 We all look at the world differently, and our views of the forest of reality are
influenced by our ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, age, ability or disability and
sexual orientation. To ready yourself for the discussion, read the description of
Hurricane Katrina provided in Sue & Sue, p. 55-56, then discuss in cooperative groups:
1. How might stratifications affect the quality of life of minorities and the poor
and the delivery of mental health services to the most disempowered in our
society?
2. When clients of color come us for help, how might “blaming the victim” operate
in our assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of them?
3. In counseling and psychotherapy, how do our unconscious, biased perceptions
of clients of color, women, and gays influence the clinical process?
4. In what ways are clients and counselors influenced by a biased racial curriculum
in their socialization process (media, education, social groups), and what are
the implications for clinical practice?
5. When counseling diverse clients, how does once reconcile our major
differences in worldviews?
6. As a helping professional, what emotional reactions around ‘race’ do you
possess that may act as a barrier to effective multicultural counseling?
7. How might the unconscious biases of helping professionals affect their ability to
deliver culturally appropriate mental health services for marginalized groups?
9:00-9:30 The instructor will have a student read p. 15-16 from Ojibwe Waasa Inaabida
to give context to our discussion of oppression. Short readings and discussions from
the book, To Be Free, will be used to facilitate discussions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Overt, in your face racism (oppression) – read section re: white supremacists
Covert, hidden racism (oppression) – read from ‘Cowboys 24, Indians 0)
Institutional racism (oppression) – read from ‘The Missing Stories’
Internalized racism (oppression) (read from ‘The Best Scouts in the Cavalry’)
Consider the implications of overt, covert, institutionalized and internalized oppression
on counseling.
9:30-10:00 Micro-aggressions are ‘brief, everyday exchanges that send denigrating
messages’ to a target group such as people of color, women, and gays. These microaggressions are often subtle in nature and can be manifested in the verbal, nonverbal
and behavioral realm.
1. 9:30-9:35 Power Point: Types of Micro-aggressions
2. 9:35-10:00 Table 5.2 (p. 125-129) provides examples of how micro-aggressions
might occur in practice. Reflect on ways our life experiences have influenced
our belief and behavior systems with regards to these manifestations, and ways
we might be more conscious of both our overt, and unconscious behavior.
Consider ways to better ‘train’ counselors with regard to minimizing microaggressions.
10:00-10:30 As a society we tend to favor young, attractive, verbal, intelligent and
successful people. Culturally, we tend to more value the use of standard English, verbal
communications, individual centeredness, a combination of
verbal/emotional/behavioral expressiveness in client-counselor communications,
openness and intimacy, cause-effect orientation, a clear distinction between physical
and mental wellbeing, and the nuclear family. Generally, counseling is done according
to middle class norms (standard English, verbal communications, adherence to time
schedules, long range goals, ambiguity). These cultural and value orientations, of
course, often conflict with non-European American, non-western, orientations. Being
more open to these differences will, of course, make us more effective in multicultural
settings, particularly in counseling. The implications of being more cognizant to these
cultural and value differences would probably make our approaches look quite
differently. Considering the implications for clinical practice provided on p. 154-155,
what would your office look like, be like, do differently as a result? What would a
code of ethical practice look like that incorporated these beliefs?
10:30-10:45 Break
10:45-12:00 Video (Sue: Barriers to Effective Multicultural Counseling) and discussion
12:00-1:00 Lunch
1:00-1:30 A student volunteer will read the story of Richard Cardinal from Reclaiming
Youth at Risk, p. 10-11, to give context to the Circle of Courage.
a. 1:30-1:35 Power Point: Circle of Courage
b. 1:35-2:00 Using the Circle of Courage as an empowerment model, what might it
look like explicitly in working with, or counseling young people?
1:30-2:00 Jigsaw: (groups to discuss and teach selected aspects of non-verbal
communications): What we say and how it is said (verbal and non-verbal
communications) has a direct impact on whether we are able to communicate to
people from different culture and value orientations. This is particularly true with our
non-verbal communication. Examples of cultural differences in non-verbal
communications are made manifest in proxemics (personal and interpersonal space),
kinesics (body movements), paralanguage (loudness of voice, pauses, silences,
hesitations, rate, inflections), and high-low context communication (see examples
given on p. 167-168). Given what you know about cultural differences in non-verbal
communications (p. 160-176), how would the manner in which you communicate nonverbally be influenced by the cultural background of your clients?
2:00-2:30 Sue’s chapter 8 focuses on family counseling (marital or couple counseling,
child-parent, or work with more than one member of the family) through a
multicultural perspective. The chapter takes a close look at how different value
systems, biculturalism (standing in two canoes), differences across ethnicities,
language, and social class (i.e. income levels) impact family counseling. An evolving
dynamic in all of this are issues of acculturation and cultural change. Using what Sue
has to say about the multicultural dimensions in family counseling, and considering
how issues of acculturation and cultural change play into the mix, discuss in groups:
a. Observed changes in culture (American, Black, Hispanic/Latino, and other
ethnic groups, including Euro-Americans) in your lifetime and their potential
impact on your approach to family counseling. Consider things like the evolving
cultural conceptions of family, family values, traditional cultural family
structures, gender roles, help networks within ethnic communities, appropriate
forms of help, and subtle to more direct interventions.
b. Specifically focus on “Euro-American” people. In what ways is Euro-American
culture (whatever that may be) evolving, and what are the implications on
counseling?
2:30-2:45 Break
2:45-4:00 Case study and activity: Maggie
Materials needed:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Sue and Sue, Chapters 3-8
Case study: Maggie
Barriers to Effective Multicultural Counseling (video)
Book: To Be Free
Book: Reclaiming Youth at Risk
Book: Ojibwe Waasa Inaabida We Look in All Directions
Power Point: Circle of Courage
Power Point: Micro-aggressions